


Close Enough To Start A War

by tonyendo



Category: Far Cry 5
Genre: F/M, Hayden’s an animal, John’s a baby, Not Canon Compliant, Past Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:26:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26241103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tonyendo/pseuds/tonyendo
Summary: As always, John was soft for her. Allowed himself to be the prey for a few minutes. Indulged her.A small collection of memories from Hope County.
Relationships: Deputy | Judge/John Seed, Female Deputy | Judge/John Seed, John Seed/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 6





	Close Enough To Start A War

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Abosa](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Abosa).



Upon the hill, a glimmer caught his eye.

There was only one thing it could be. A rifle—one he’d been lined up in the crosshairs of plenty of times before. Gold plated and just as garish as the woman wielding it.

Slowly, as to not draw suspicion, he glanced around the yard. None of his men seemed out of place or missing. None of the alarms appeared offline, either.

What was she waiting for?

John continued about his business around the cabin. Boldly, he’d cross in front of east facing windows. Each time he did, gold would flash at him from the hill. No shots were taken, evident by the fact he didn’t have a hole between his eyes, and _clearly_ his men hadn’t even spotted her.

“I’ll be finished here in a while,” he assured one of them. “You all should go see if they need help at the rail yard. I’ve heard murmurings that the _duo_ have been lingering in that area.”

The man furrowed his brow. “Are you sure, Mr. Seed? I think someone should stay with you—“

“I appreciate the concern,” John interjected gently. “but I can handle my own. If someone wanted to harm us, they would have showed up by now, no? Besides, there’s only one road in or out. I should be fine for a few minutes.” He offered a smile to put the man at ease.

His charm worked. Or, perhaps he made the man uncomfortable enough that he decided to leave. Sometimes it was hard to tell. They went off in a PEG branded vehicle, leaving John on his own. He retreated to his bedroom.

Right on time, his window slid open. A crash followed by a winded _oof_ gave way to her presence. John shook his head, flipping through his Book of Joseph.

“You know,” he started, idly tabbing through the scripture, “you’re not very stealthy, Hayden. I could see you from on the hill.”

“That was the point,” she grumbled, dusting herself off. “I was flagging you down. Gave you a good old American _flashing_. Took you long enough to send your goons away.”

John glared at her. “First off, you make no sense when you talk like that. Please, at least _attempt_ to sound educated if you’re going to open your mouth.”

“Second—The people of Eden’s Gate are not _goons_ , Hayden. One could not say the same for your band of misfits.” He snapped the book shut. “Do you have _any_ inclination of how much work it required to put that sign up? How much it _cost me?_ Don’t get me _started_ on zoning rights.”

She held a hand to her ear. “Am I dreaming? Do I hear the holier-than-thou Johnny Appleseed complaining about _material possessions?_ Careful, greed is an _ugly sin.”_ Hayden tossed him a wicked grin as she started to remove her muddied boots—right on his expensive, authentic bear pelt rug.

“Hayden—“ he protested, but she had already tracked the muck everywhere. Agitated, he let out a huff. “What are you doing here? You know that if Joseph knows that _I_ know you’re here I have to bring you in.”

Slinging her gun off of her back, she tossed it onto his desk. “You see, a little birdy told me you’ve been making other friends.” Crossing the room, she stood over him, trapping him in his chair. The deputy went as far as to settle into his lap. Despite her close proximity John didn’t seem bothered. The deputy was in his bedroom, had him alone, and he didn’t feel _threatened_ in the slightest.

If she wanted to hurt him, she very well would have by then.

Hayden had ample opportunities since the raid on the church to kill him. She could have put a bullet in his head several times that afternoon. Then there had been the whole ordeal with the _shovel_...

Hayden trailed her fingers up his jaw, through his stubble. His head tilted back with the touch. He knew he shouldn’t, he knew their friendship had withered. He knew Hayden had burnt any threads between them in only four words. His love should have gone down with the _YES_ sign that overlooked the valley _—_ in a blazing inferno, fueled by hatred for him.

Yet, still, he couldn’t help the sharp spark of yearning he felt as she touched him.

Not surprisingly, her grip on his jaw tightened. “Where is she, babe.” It wasn’t a question. A demand.

“Who?” He murmured lazily, blue eyes flicking up to her green ones.

“Ry-an,” she drew out slowly, punctuating both syllables. “Tell me where she is, you deaf owl.”

His brow furrowed. His men had captured a lot of the resistance members, but _that one—_

“Why do you think I have her?”

Hayden laughed dryly and pushed his head away. He grunted as his skull hit the back of the chair, but it didn’t hurt. 

“Why wouldn’t you? You’ve taken quite an interest in her.” Hayden glared back at him. She moved forward again, pressing his shoulders forcefully against the backing. “New, pretty plaything in the valley. If it walks you’ll fuck it, isn’t that your conquest?”

Hayden leaned forward, her hands going on top of John’s. His tattoos were obscured by her scarred hands. Their faces were close together, and he could feel each exhale on his cheek.

“I saw your notes, John. What kind do _sick fucking game_ are you playing?” She tilted her head. “You don’t do that. So why did you do it to her?”

“You went in my bunker?”

That earned him a backhanding. With a hiss, he kept his head turned from her as he touched the stinging area. “You know,” he growled, eyes narrowing at her, “that’s not how you treat someone who’s being hospitable.”

“You haven’t even offered me a beer.”

“You tracked mud on my genuine bearskin.”

“ _You stole my friend_.”

John grabbed her hands and peeled them off him. “I did _no_ such thing. I don’t know where Detective Ramsey is, Hayden. After she escaped I lost track of her.”

Not a total lie— She’d escaped, and fled north to Jacob’s area. If she wanted to lie among the wolves, he had no jurisdiction. Seeing Jacob wasn’t high on his list of priorities at the moment. 

He stood, checking her as he began to walk away. “Besides, you can not _steal_ a person. You do not _own_ the detective.”

Hayden let out a yell and _tackled_ him onto his bed. “You were the last to see her! Tell me where the hell she is! She’s not in your bunker, so _where the fuck—!_ ”

The two scrapped against his bed. John was trying to push her off, but she kept wildly grabbing at him. Pain rippled up his arm, causing him to cry out.

“You _fucking bit me!_ ”

Hayden gnashed her teeth at him, successful in pinning him down. She looked more like a crazed animal, a predator being forced to protect herself and her assets, refusing to be bested.

She was short. Small, half his size. Not very heavy, either, as he remembered from slow nights in that very bed. He could throw her off, wrestle her to the ground and have her in a bliss induced nap faster than she could spit another insult in his face.

As always, John was soft for her. Allowed himself to be the prey for a few minutes. _Indulged her._

John grabbed a fistful of her short brown hair and yanked her away before she could sink her teeth into his skin again. “ _Hayden._ Relax.”

She began to struggle again, and he flipped them over. She sank back into the bedding, no longer thrashing, but far from submitting. “Tell me where Ryan is and I’ll go.”

His words gave him pause. Perhaps she _was_ relenting. She wasn’t the type to attempt to find a resolution so… _passively._

John leaned in, studying her face. She sneered at him, the chip in her front teeth exposed. _ATV accident,_ he knew, when she was a teenager. Many, many years before he had arrived in Montana. Better times, before Eden’s Gate moved in. _Before Joseph found him._

“Why do you care?” he whispered. “You don’t give a damn about anyone but yourself. Why are _you_ interested in the detective?”

Hayden snapped her teeth at him. The action didn’t cause him to flinch as she had likely hoped. “She’s a friend.”

“You don’t have friends.”

Hayden’s expression steeled. Instead of gracing him with a real retort, she spit in his face, causing him to recoil in disgust. “ _Fuck you, John Seed._ ”

He was hastily wiping her assault off his face as he bed creaked. Hayden snatched her shoes and rifle, bee-lining for the window.

“Oh, no you don’t—!”

This time, _he_ tackled _her._ John’s arms went around her middle as he pulled her to the floor. The chair was overturned, objects on his desk displaced as they slammed into it.

“ _Get off of me!”_ Hayden jammed the butt of her rifle into his sternum. The blow floored him. John falling back gave her plenty of time to vault out the window and into the sunset. 

In doing so, she abandoned her muddied boots. Once he could stand, he snatched up her shoes and threw them after her.

“I don’t have her!” He yelled after her fleeing figure. Then, he slammed the window with enough force to crack the frame.

Hayden didn’t have friends— no, she tolerated people. Before John had arrived, her closest confidant had been Nick Rye. Then, she’d grown comfortable with his tattoos and fancy suits.

One thing that was easy to tell about Hayden was that any emotion that wasn’t anger or malice was cut as soon as it sprouted. She’d pick away at others, insult them and peel away their confidence until they felt as insecure as her. Crack a joke with a toothy grin to avoid the truth— she was lonely. She ached every hour of the day.

What was so special about one Ryan Ramsey that Hayden would open herself up to being wounded again by John?

**Author's Note:**

> Ryan belongs to my friend, Em!


End file.
